What other sport do you know where you are tested on your skills as much as derby skaters are? Sure, when I played basketball I tried out to get on travel teams, but it was never like this. I really hadn’t sat any kind of test like this before (not as structured or regimented) and flashbacks of self doubt and nervous bladders came flooding back (pardon the pun!) like I was fresh meat again!

I had made peace with myself that it was going to be ok if I didn’t make it through this time. I was with a new league and in my mind I still had a long way back to fitness and strength and wasn’t sure I was there yet.

I was quite a nervous wreck through the whole test (which includes – endurance, surging, timing, safe pack skating, active offence/defence, adaptive strategy and scrimmage – with various components that are being observed). After the endurance component (which I managed to get 27 in 5 which I was totally happy with!) I had a little *moment* to myself, flat on my back, catching my breath and having a little cry (I do get so emotional!!).

During scrimmage I constantly had to remind myself (and be reminded) to open my mouth and yell! I have little brain-fart moments on the track when my brain thinks what needs to be said but “forgets to communicate” this to my mouth for the words to come out. I had moments where I was yelling the completely wrong thing – instead of screaming WALL UP to my team I ended up yelling MAN UP and confusing everybody! Something that I know I need to work on.

When it was all over, it was really hard to tell how we went. I felt good at the effort I had given, but you really never know what you might have slipped up on or excelled in (even if you thought you were crap at!).

We were told results weren’t going to be posted until the next day, which was a little deflating – but off to the pub we went! Plenty of ciders later and multiple checks of the forum saw our Green Star results being posted earlier than expected (there was only 3 of us sitting for it)… and I PASSED!!

So now I will be training as a Green Star and be eligible to bout and potentially be picked for the travel team. I only have one more part of the assessment to go which is a written rules test (before I am technically allowed to bout). Another bloody test! I haven’t sat a written test since high school!!… better get to studying then!

I do not like the testing process of derby! I’m not good with it at all, always struggle with it! They need to find some sneaky way of doing it without you knowing it’s a “test” so then I won’t need to pee a million times and feel like throwing up in my own helmet!! 🙂